


More Than He Hoped For

by silvathemagicalgirl



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Best Friends, Friendship, Gen, everyone is happy au, please nomura let them all be happy, self-indulgent TO THE MAX
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-17
Updated: 2019-01-17
Packaged: 2019-10-11 18:14:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17451926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silvathemagicalgirl/pseuds/silvathemagicalgirl
Summary: A bit of a self-indulgent what-if. Ienzo and Even have found a way to restore trapped hearts, and Roxas couldn't have hoped for a better Somebody.Everyone Is Happy AU-ish.





	More Than He Hoped For

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a while ago, but finally decided to post it because of KHIII hype. Takes place post-DDD, sometime during KHIII.
> 
> I just need them all happy ok.

Sora’s heart was warm. That was really the only word that encompassed the peace and comfort that was palpable in the air, the bright sun and sandy beaches that were a reflection of Sora’s home. The skies here were always clear and the sun always high in the sky. It was most people’s definition of a never-ending paradise. His Somebody’s heart could have been a whole lot worse.

 

Roxas kicked off his shoes and let the sand squeeze through his toes. Considering how much he had been looking forward to the beach back in Twilight Town,  his first day here had been surreal. Feeling the sand for the first time, feeling the sun on his face, his first view of the ocean--he had never imagined the ocean could be so _big._

 

Unfortunately, this ocean was too big to cross.

 

A Paradise was only as good as the people you share it with, and unfortunately, Roxas had none.

 

He had Sora, of course. Well, sorta. Sora was more of an ambient presence. Roxas could feel him _everywhere._ But he could only observe his Somebody, and could only interact with him on rare occasions. And manifesting himself to Sora took a lot out of him--he almost always slept for a full day afterwards. The one time they had fought had left him out of commission for three.

 

There were other presences too, although he couldn’t name them. They were much weaker, but they were there. One in particular felt familiar, and tears came to his eyes every time he reached for it. Roxas swallowed, feeling the lump in his throat already. He had to be careful, sometimes his tears leaked over into Sora, and the poor boy had been through enough confusion.

 

Not that he hadn’t either.

 

When he had first merged with his Somebody, he had been angry. Angry that he couldn’t make his own choices. Angry that his entire existence had been a lie. Angry that he was no longer free. The sandy beaches had become his wonderful, beautiful prison. But mostly, he was angry at how _right_ it felt. Sora’s heart felt like home, and it was _maddening_. Because if this was his home, then that meant they had been right--Nobodies shouldn’t exist, and had no right existing.

 

All he wanted was to go to the beach with his best friends.

 

_His best friends….._

 

_Hayner, Pence and Olette?_

 

_Was that who he had promised to go with?_

 

_Or was it Axel and…_

 

He let himself fall back into the sand, blinking away the emotions again. There were few things more frustrating than hurting and not knowing why. He couldn’t remember. _Why couldn’t he remember?_

 

He sighed, and let Sora’s warmth take over. Dwelling on the memories didn’t solve anything. He took a deep breath of the now familiar salt air, and took a moment to just enjoy the beach.

 

After all, there were worse prisons.

 

He couldn’t really have hoped for a better Somebody. He had never met anybody so selfless in all his life. He was a little bit of an airhead for sure, but he treated him like a _person_ . Not a _thing_. He had touched so many hearts, and tried so hard to help everyone he came in contact with. He hid his insecurities behind a smile, but Roxas knew he felt inferior to pretty much everyone. He had been living in Riku’s shadow all his life, and was still to this day. The keyblade had given him confidence, until he learned it was never his to begin with. He worked so hard to preserve the light, but still questioned whether he was worthy to do so. He hadn’t even blinked at failing his Mark of Mastery exam. He was happy for Riku with all his heart. But it had only solidified his hidden insecurities--Sora believed he didn’t deserve to be a Master.

 

He hid it when people were around of course. He didn’t want to burden anyone more than he already was. But he couldn’t hide it from Roxas.

 

He really wished he had a physical form so he could punch Yen Sid in the face.

 

He probably should be more grateful to Sora. He didn’t ask to create a Nobody--he hadn’t even asked to be involved with Keyblade wielders at all. Sora didn’t ask for any of this. But Roxas couldn’t help but hold on to a tiny bit of resentment. Sora was the reason he was stuck here.

 

Man, he really wanted some ice cream right now.

 

He closed his eyes and felt himself starting to doze. He was like Sora in that way, he supposed. It’s not like he really had anything better to do anyway. Besides, he needed a break from his thoughts.

 

He wasn’t sure how long he had slept, but he awoke to the pull.

 

It was gentle at first, and then sudden, jerking him downwards. Or was it upwards? He wasn’t really sure. Whether by his half asleep state or the pull, he had lost his sense of direction. He opened his eyes to blinding white light, and slammed them back shut.

 

Sora? Had something happened to Sora?

 

What was going on?

 

Where was the sand? The sun?

The knowledge that he had been ripped from the beaches of Destiny Islands hurt more than the force pulling him to who knows where. Why was it that whenever he began to consider a place home, he was ripped from it? He finally thought he could settle--it wasn’t ideal, sure, but it was peaceful and beautiful and it was where he belonged. Wasn’t it? Could he ever really belong anywhere?

 

And what if something happened to Sora? Was he hurt? Was he…what would happen to him if Sora had…

 

The force set him down on his feet and was gone. The ground was solid below him, and didn’t give like sand. The sea breeze was gone, and the air was completely stagnant. He was definitely not on Destiny Islands anymore.

 

“Did it work?” a soft female voice said, and Roxas realized he wasn’t alone. His eyes flew open. He was definitely not alone. In fact, there were multiple faces staring back at him.

 

“Roxas?” another voice asked hesitantly. Roxas turned to face the boy who had spoken.

 

He blinked in confusion. “Sora?”

 

“It worked!” Sora cheered, pumping his fist into the air. “It really worked!”

 

“How are….wha…” Roxas stared at his Somebody as he bounced up and down. While outwardly as energetic and cheerful as ever, he noticed the sweat on his brow and slight fatigue in his eyes.

 

He looked around, trying desperately to make sense of the situation. He was in a room with yellow painted walls, which he soon recognized from watching Sora as the lab in Radiant Garden. He noticed that Kairi and Riku were here as well, and Donald, Goofy, and King Mickey were hanging back by the door.  But that...didn’t make any logical sense. Why would Sora’s heart change to Radiant Garden? And how would Sora be here? How were any of them here?

 

Unless…

 

“I told you that you deserved to be your own person. It just took some time to figure out how,” Sora said, putting his hands behind his head.

 

This was...real?

 

He was in the real Radiant Garden?

 

This time, he let the tears come.

 

“Sora.” He took a hesitant first step forward, and then crashed into his Somebody, hugging him for the first time. Sora seemed startled, but eventually hugged back.

 

“This is real? I’m not dreaming?” he sobbed.

 

“It's real, Roxas,” Sora assured him. “I couldn't just let you in there forever. Ze--Ienzo, and Even, they found a way.”

 

Sora was patient as Roxas cried into his shoulder. He really _couldn't_ have hoped for a better Somebody.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“Aw, please. After everything you've been through, you deserve this.”

 

“How did you keep me from finding out?”

 

“I wanted it to be a surprise,” he said with a huge smile. “I wasn't sure you wouldn't know but...apparently it worked.”

 

“And you didn't hurt yourself doing this?”

 

“Nope, we’re both full people. Riku and Kairi wouldn't have let me go through with it otherwise. Although I’ll admit the separation was a bit strenuous. But it was worth it.”

 

He hugged the boy tighter. “See, this is why the keyblade chose you.”

 

Sora laughed. “Yeah, I guess.”

 

“No, really.” Roxas pulled out of the hug and put his hands on Sora's shoulders. He stared him eye, to make sure the other boy knew he was serious. “This only proves what I already knew. The keyblade chose you. It went from its original owner to you. You never received it from anyone, you shouldn't be able to wield it, but you can. If anything, that makes you more worthy than anyone else. They,” he said, flinging his hand towards Riku and Kairi for emphasis, “were chosen by people. You were chosen by the keyblade itself. You've saved countless worlds and touched countless people. Stop doubting yourself.”

 

Sora stared for a minute, then broke out into laughter. He wiped a tear from his eye. “Guess I can't hide everything from you can I?”

 

“Sora,” said Kairi darkly. She had her hands on her hips. Sora was in for it now. “What is he talking about? Have you been shouldering your insecurities by yourself again?”

 

While Kairi chewed Sora out, Roxas took a chance to observe himself in a nearby mirror. It was almost as if he had never fused with Sora at all. He looked the same as he did back in Twilight Town. He fiddled with his familiar wristband, rubbing the fabric between his fingers.

 

“Roxas?”

 

He knew that voice. He whipped around.

 

“Axe--I mean, Lea.”

 

“It worked,” he said in awe.

 

“Yeah.”

 

Lea then broke out to infectious laughter, and Roxas couldn't help laughing too. Lea must have been spending a lot of time with Sora--his laughter was rubbing off. Not that it was a bad thing.

 

“You did promise to bring us back.”

 

“Yeah. Yeah I did.”

 

“Hey!” Sora called. “I did most of the work!”

 

“Yeah, but who kept you out of Xehanort's clutches?” Lea called back.

 

“Riku.”

 

“Hey, I helped!”

 

Roxas wasn't sure he had ever laughed this hard. It was all more than he could have ever hoped for.

 

When he caught his breath, he turned to Kairi. “Does that mean Naminé…”

 

“She's next,” Kairi confirmed. “She insisted you go first. I wasn't able to hide it from her. She's too intuitive for her own good.”

 

Roxas smiled. “That she is.”

 

He turned back to Sora and Lea, still trying to one-up each other in the background. “Hey Lea!” he yelled. “You wanna go get some ice cream?”

 

“Just a second, Roxas. I gotta put this shrimp in his place first. When Xehanort shot his weird gold heart thing at you, I was the one to block it! That was me! Got it memorized?”

 

“Yeah, but I was the one to follow him into the Realm of Dreams,” said Riku, walking into the room. Roxas hadn’t even noticed that he left. Mickey, Goofy, and Donald had also left, probably to give them some privacy. “Besides, I was also the one who had to fight time-traveling-Xehanort. He could turn back time and heal his wounds. It was a real pain.”

 

Roxas broke out into laughter again. It was such a frivolous argument--who had saved who and who was the real hero. It was so different from the friendship-breaking arguments that he had become accustomed to, full of anger and tears, that it seemed almost stupid in comparison. Hilariously stupid.

 

It felt _really good_.

 

“You guys never change, do ya?” he said through the laughing fit. He clutched his stomach as his diaphragm started to hurt.

 

“I ask myself that question every day,” Riku said with a smirk.

 

“Hey!” Lea and Sora shouted at the same time. This only made Roxas laugh harder.

 

“Now, if you two are done,” Riku started when Roxas’s laughter finally died down. “Roxas, Lea, there’s one more thing. Follow me.”

 

Roxas met Lea’s eyes, and his best friend shrugged. Roxas fell in step behind Riku, and Lea followed behind them. Riku led them down the hallway.

 

“As you know, you weren’t the only heart trapped inside of Sora. Ventus woke up in Castle Oblivion a while back. You’ll have to meet him later. He, Terra, and Aqua are busy trying to restore the Land of Departure. Sora just couldn’t wait for them to get here,” Riku explained. “But there was one other heart inside of Sora’s who was also restored in today’s procedure.”

 

_One other...heart?_ The strange pain was back, rising in his throat. Whatever was causing it was in the room that Riku had just stopped in front of.

 

Riku opened the door, and Roxas stared into familiar, blue eyes.

 

The memories hit him like a truck.

 

Memories of seeing her for the first time from up on his chair in the castle. Memories of fighting side-by-side, completing missions and collecting hearts. Memories of watching the sunset and eating ice cream. Memories of laughing like they didn’t have a care in the world. Memories of her pointing her keyblade at his face. Memories of her attacking him. Memories of him attacking back.

 

Memories of her disappearing in his arms.

 

“Xi...on?”

 

“Hey, Roxas. Lea.”

 

He sprinted forward and buried her in a hug. He was surprised that his eyes had any tears left, but they were flowing. When Lea surrounded them both with his arms, that was when she lost it. They held each other for what felt like hours, all three of them crying until their bodies ran out of spare water to use. They were together. They were whole.

 

It was more than he could have hoped for.

 

“Now,” Lea said, slapping them both on the back affectionately. “Who wants some ice cream?”


End file.
